What it's like to have your world turned upside down by an insider trading conviction

Preet Bharara, US attorney for the Southern District of New York. AP Photo What's it like to be convicted of insider trading and later freed?

William D. Cohan wrote a fascinating profile for Fortune about Todd Newman, the hedge fund manager at now defunct Diamondback Capital, whose case has raised questions about the definition of insider trading.

According to the government's case against him, Newman allegedly heard fourthhand information that he then traded on. Newman has maintained his innocence, and he racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees defending himself, according to the Fortune piece.

"As he reflects on the events that reshaped his life, Newman, 51, shows traces of bitterness but mostly exudes calm and a degree of satisfaction. That perspective has come only with time, though. The day the feds came calling, his feelings ran more toward fear, panic, and confusion."

In the Fortune article, Newman recounts the months he waited to see if he would be charged with wrongdoing, and how he feared that his young daughter would see him being arrested.

In 2013, Newman was sentenced to 54 months in federal prison. In December 2014, an appeals court overturned his conviction.

Much had been written about the legal meaning of that overturning, but Fortune's story is the first time we hear Newman's perspective.

Today, Newman says he cannot find another job in the hedge fund industry, and he plans to start a business that would help others through experiences like his, Fortune reported.